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She glared and grabbed another bacon strip. “What’s the next step?”
“We’ll have to talk to your dad at some point,” I said while studying my nails.
“Tanner,” she said, her voice rough. “I didn’t sign up for that.”
“Come on.” I jumped to my feet. “Let’s go see Dante.”
“You’re insane.”
“You’ll love him, I promise. He’s a great guy.”
“He’s trying to kill me.” She stuffed more bacon in her mouth. “Can’t be that great.”
“Aw, don’t hold that against him. It’s just business.”
“You’re fucking insane. All of you are insane. I’m surrounded by insane people.”
I gave her one of those little gentle friendly punches on the shoulder.
She just glared at me and chewed her bacon.
“Let’s roll,” I said.
She followed, grumbling the whole way.The bakery was more crowded than I had ever seen it. The light was low. Tables were wood and polished metal. The display case had ten different types of donuts and pastries. Baskets behind the counter overflowed with fresh bread. The espresso machine screamed out steam as an older woman jostled back and forth between the machine and the counter.
I stood in the doorway with Elise just behind me. I felt the reassuring weight of the Glock tucked into my pants.
At least half the place stared at me in shocked recognition.
“I guess you all heard,” I said as my eyes swept the coffee shop. A guy with a thick beard and a bun on his head typed on a MacBook to my right. A mother with a baby in a carrier drank coffee. A few others were blissfully unaware of the situation.
I spotted Dante sitting in the booth on my left. He had three guys with him, each dressed in dark clothes. I spotted the telltale lumps of guns on them.
Dante smiled. “I had a feeling you’d show up.”
I spread my hands wide. “Can’t help myself.”
“Always were a showman.”
“Ah, man, you got me.” I walked toward his table.
One of Dante’s guys stood up. I poked his chest with my finger. “You’re… Ryan?”
“That’s Ryan,” the guy said, nodding at the younger kid with slicked-back hair sitting next to Dante. “I’m John.”
“Oh, right, shit. Sorry, John.”
“If you touch me again—”
“John,” Dante said, “don’t bother. You know him.”
John glared at me and I just smiled and waggled my eyebrows. “Better listen to the big boss, Johnny boy.”
He turned and gestured at the table.
The other guys cleared away and sat at an adjoining table. I pulled out a chair for Elise and she sat, her back straight. She looked fucking terrified and I couldn’t blame her.
I took the chair next to her.
Dante sat leaning back with his arms crossed over his chest.
“So what are you doing here, Tanner?”
“Came to talk,” I said.
“I figured. But you realize we’re out for the girl here, right?” His eyes flipped to Elise. “No offense, darling. Nothing personal.”
“Yeah, not personal to you,” she said.
I laughed. “She’s funny. You really want to kill her?”
“I don’t want to kill anyone,” Dante said with a hint of annoyance in his tone. “But I do what I’m told.”
“Good little soldier, I know.” I leaned forward. “But come on, Dante. You’ve earned a little… autonomy these days, haven’t you?”
He flinched. “Maybe.”
“I know you’ve been killing it,” I said. “You own almost all of West Philly now, right?”
“Could be.”
“I bet the Don loves you,” I said. “You don’t start trouble, you bring in the money, you grow the business. You’re probably in line for some serious leadership role one day.”
“What’s your point?”
“My point is, if you spoke up for the girl, we might be able to avoid all this nonsense.”
“Could be,” he said. “The Don might listen to me. But the bigger question is, why the fuck would I spend any of the good will that I’ve accrued over the years on this girl?”
“Hey,” she said, “asshole.”
“No offense,” he said.
“Right, just business.” She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.
“Think of it this way,” I said. “You do this favor for me, and I owe you.”
He tilted his head. “That’s not enough.”
“Okay,” I said. “You do this favor, and I owe you, and your Don praises you for your forethought and business savvy.”
Dante let out a breath and looked at Elise. “Does he talk like this to you?” he asked. “Like everyone just understands what the hell he means?”
“Yep,” she said. “Annoying. But not as annoying as when people try to kill me.”
Dante grinned at that then turned back to me. “Explain yourself.”
I crossed my legs and put my hands on the table. “It’s pretty simple. If you spare the girl, I might be able to set up some kind of beneficial business arrangement with her father,” I said. “Even though he’s new to town, we both know he has some serious muscle up north.”
“That’s true,” Dante said. “He hasn’t been a pushover here, either.”
“Which is why you’re going after the girl,” I said, nodding. “Makes sense.”
